The present invention relates to fishing apparatus and, more particularly, to methods and apparatus for applying bait to hooks and for storing bait.
Bait fishing is a popular pastime. In this manner of fishing, a fish hook has bait applied thereto which is attractive to the fish by such attributes as smell, taste, and consistency. Such bait falls into two general categories--natural and artificial. Natural baits include worms, minnows, frogs, crabs, clams, and the like. Artificial baits are often used, however, because of the non-availability of natural bait, convenience, or fish preference. Materials such as marshmallows, fish, and pork rind are used by piercing them with the fish hook.
In U.S. Pat. No. 871,486, an artificial fish-like material is disclosed which is mixed, molded, allowed to set, and then pierced through by a fish hook in the manner of a natural piece of fish or pork rind.
Another whole family of artificial baits are those such as the doughs or cheeses which are mixed by the fisherman or obtained commercially in jars. Several such compositions are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,607,294; 1,795,238; 1,593,904; and 1,291,614. For simplicity, all these baits will be referred to hereinafter as "cheese" whereas, in fact, they may be any number of combinations of ingredients being of a consistency which is spreadable but not flowable, i.e., won't flow off the hook.
Typically, such cheese bait is rolled in the palm of the hand to warm it to a moldable consistency and shaped it into a ball. A treble hook is then thrust into the ball and the cheese material pressed about the treble hook. Because of the nature of the product, it is difficult to pre-bait the hooks and travel with them safely in a pre-baited condition. Consequently, the bait must be applied at the time of use in a manner which is not only inconvenient, but messy.
Wherefore, it is the object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for preparing cheese bait and allowing it to be safely transported for later use in a convenient and non-messy manner.